


Gym Class: Volleyball Edition

by LarryLashton98



Series: Jamie and Mason's cuddle time [10]
Category: Fan Art - Sarah Tregay
Genre: Concerned Mason, Concerned Mason Viveros, Concussions, Domestic Fluff, Fluff, Fluff and Hurt/Comfort, Hurt Jamie, Hurt Jamie Peterson, Hurt/Comfort, M/M, Volleyball, poor Jamie
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-04-19
Updated: 2020-04-19
Packaged: 2021-03-02 01:22:29
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,048
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23726764
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LarryLashton98/pseuds/LarryLashton98
Summary: Jamie's having fun playing a game of volleyball with his friends during gym class. Until the ball gets spiked into his face.
Relationships: Jamie Peterson & Mason Viveros
Series: Jamie and Mason's cuddle time [10]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/719259
Comments: 4
Kudos: 2





	Gym Class: Volleyball Edition

**Author's Note:**

> For Renee!  
> Request: I would LOVE some more hurt/comfort fluffy fics!  
> Thank you for requesting it! I would say it was fun to write, but that might be a bit mean to Jamie.  
> (I started a different one for you, but it's much bigger and way more intense and is not being posted soon, so here's this one!)
> 
> Poor Jamie, getting beat up so much in my fics :( he's an absolute sweetheart who doesn't deserve any of it
> 
> Thank you to MermaidMayonnaise for betaing this for me!

It was warm out when the coach took their gym class to the outdoor volleyball court. Sometimes when he let them do their own thing- usually football- he let them pick the teams, but today he divided the class himself. Jamie had been hoping to be on Mason’s team (as he usually hoped for), but instead, he was put on the same team as Brodie. Mason and Kellen were on the opposite team and Brodie and Kellen made a show of how they were going to pulverize the other and Jamie couldn’t stop himself from chuckling at their antics.

Then the game was on.

Their team was winning and Brodie’s enthusiasm was contagious and Jamie was having fun, playing the game with his friends. Until Mason spiked the ball directly into his face.

Jamie’s face exploded with pain as his head flew back from the force of the ball half a second before his body followed through with the motion and carried him careening to the ground. The back of his head smacked the concrete ground and the wind was knocked from his lungs. 

Struggling to breathe, Jamie panicked and wondered dimly what happened. It took more than a few tries to pull in enough air to breathe properly again. He panted as his head throbbed and he couldn’t get his thoughts in order. He blinked a few times, wincing at the bright sunlight through the clear blue sky.

Sluggishly, he realized that Brodie was in his line of vision and was saying something, but he couldn’t hear over the ringing in his ears. Then the coach was there and a slightly blurry Mason was standing over Brodie’s shoulder. His eyes were wide and his hands were clasped over his mouth.

“…son?” The coach’s voice barely cut through the ringing that was no longer quite as persistent. “Peterson, can you hear me?”

Jamie blinked a few times as the ringing slowly lessened. “…what?” he croaked.

“Can I get some space, please?” the coach said and then Brodie was gone and the sun was attacking Jamie’s eyes again.

Jamie winced again, scrunching his eyes closed.

“Peterson, can you hear me?” the coach asked again as he shielded Jamie’s eyes from the sun.

“…Um, y-yeah.”

“Good. Follow my finger with your eyes.”

Jamie dimly remembered seeing the coach saying the same thing to other students. However, those students were usually on the football team. He tried watching the coach’s finger go back and forth- he really did- but he felt like it was taking more concentration than it should.

“I think you have a concussion. You need to go to the nurse.”

The coach helped pull him up into a sitting position too quickly and Jamie groaned in protest. He felt something dripping down his face and he gently put a finger to his nose before whimpering and pulling it away. It was covered in blood. The coach went slower as he helped Jamie stand, but he still stumbled as his vision swam and his legs refused to take the full weight of his body.

Then Mason was there on his other side, tucking himself under Jamie’s arm as his own snaked around Jamie’s middle to keep him upright. Jamie’s eyes slid shut and he didn’t even have to look to know it was his best friend; his familiar touch and smell enough for Jamie to know.

“Hamilton,” the coach called, and Brodie took his place under Jamie’s other arm. “Viveros. You two take him to the nurse.”

“Yes, coach,” Brodie replied. “C’mon, Jamie. Stay awake.”

It took a second for it to realize that Brodie was talking to him, then another to register what he said.

“I’m so sorry,” Mason spilled out as soon as they were inside, voice guilt-ridden. “I am, I’m- shit, Jamie. I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to- I am so, so sorry.”

“‘s okay,” Jamie mumbled.

Mason’s arm tightened around Jamie for a second and his heart fluttered despite the situation. He wondered why.

* * *

It’s close enough to the end of the day that when the nurse tried to send Mason back to class. He protested, saying that he had to stay with Jamie.

“I know you’re worried about your friend, but he will be fine. You can come back to find him at the end of class.”

“There’s only half an hour left of the day! There’s no point in going back! It’s _gym_.”

“Your teacher will have to be the judge of that. Besides, the only thing you would be doing here is sitting in the waiting room the whole time. You wouldn’t be with him.”

She wouldn’t be swayed, and so Brodie accompanied him back to class.

“He’ll be okay,” Brodie comforted. “I got a concussion last year and, yeah, it sucked, but I was fine by the end of the week.”

Mason frowned as he remembered the incident. “Yeah, I know. It’s still my fault he’s hurt, though.”

“No, it’s not. It was an accident. I’m sure Jamie understands that. There is absolutely no way he blames you for it so you shouldn’t either.”

“Thanks, Brodie.” Mason smiled half-heartedly.

Brodie grinned and threw his arm around Mason’s shoulders. “C’mon. Coach’ll be waiting for us.”

Just over half an hour later, Mason was speed changing in the locker room in his haste to get back to the nurse’s office. Kellen called after him to update them and Mason threw a thumbs up over his shoulder.

The bruise on Jamie’s face had darkened, though the blood was cleaned up, and he was holding an ice pack to his head.

“Hey,” he said quietly when he reached where Jamie was sitting.

Jamie hummed in reply and slumped against his hip.

Mason stood next to him, reaching down and around Jamie to put a hand on his opposite shoulder. He tucked Jamie further into his side when the nurse exited her office.

She had wanted to call Jamie’s mom to pick him up, but Mason explained that she was busy at work and that he was already going to be driving Jamie home. He wasn’t- Jamie was going to drive him- but the nurse didn’t need to know that.

So, with a sigh, she began telling him that Jamie had a concussion and bruised, but not broken, nose.

 _Shit_. It hadn’t even occurred to him that he could’ve broken Jamie’s nose.

She explained that Jamie showed symptoms of a headache, dizziness, confusion, difficulty focusing, and his speech was slurred.

With every word she said, Mason’s heart dropped further and further.

“He will be feeling tired and will want to sleep, but try to keep him awake for three to six hours to monitor the injury for signs of it worsening. Afterwards, make sure he sleeps for eight to ten hours. If there are any signs of it getting worse, take him to the hospital. This,” she handed him a pamphlet about concussions, “should tell you what you need to know. There are also a few websites listed where you can go for further information.”

Then she sent them off with a warning about loud noises, electronic screens, and any other activities that would be straining on his eyes.

They kept the radio off as Jamie curled up in the passenger seat. Mason spoke quietly during the drive, encouraging Jamie to talk as well as making sure that he was staying awake and coherent.

The house was blissfully empty when they arrived. It was a bit of a struggle for Mason to help Jamie get up the stairs, but they managed it eventually, going slow and taking it one step at a time. 

Mason suggested that Jamie lay down on the couch in the living room, but Jamie protested, saying he wouldn’t be comfortable there. He didn’t have to say it, but Mason knew he wanted the comfort of his own bed.

They entered Jamie’s room. Mason sat him on the bed as he got to pulling off Jamie’s shoes. Jamie started tugging at his bloody shirt while Mason knelt at his feet, but paused as his eyes glazed over a little. Mason helped pull him out and a clean shirt on.

When he lowered Jamie down onto the mattress, Jamie panicked and cried out as his hands gripped tightly at Mason’s upper arms.

“It’s okay,” Mason said soothingly, “I’ve got you. I’m not going to let you fall,” and Jamie relaxed into his hold. A few moments later, he hissed as his head put weight on the pillow. Mason was painfully reminded that the back of Jamie’s head was bruised from smacking the concrete.

Jamie also wanted out of his dirty gym shorts and Mason helped him out of them and under the blankets. When he started to move to put the dirty clothes into the laundry basket, Jamie reached out and wrapped his hand around Mason’s wrist.

“I wasn’t going anywhere. I was, just-” Mason stuttered to a stop. “I’m here,” he said instead. Pulling Jamie’s desk chair to the bed, he sat and put his hand over top of Jamie’s. “Are you okay? I mean, considering…”

Rolling his head to the side to relieve the pressure on his injury, Jamie pouted up at him. “M’ head hur’s.”

“Is the ice pack from the nurse still cold? If not, I can grab you something from downstairs.”

Jamie gave a small nod.

“Yes to which one?”

Jamie didn’t answer, so Mason figured he’d go check downstairs to grab something, but when he went to stand, Jamie still had a hold of his wrist with no indication of letting go. He checked the temperature of the ice pack on Jamie’s forehead and was grateful to find it was still mostly cold.

Remembering that he had to keep Jamie awake for a few hours, Mason sat there and talked about anything and nothing in a low voice. He had to prompt Jamie to respond when his eyes grew bleary.

About an hour later there was a knock on the door.

“Jamie?” came the voice of Jamie’s mom.

“We’re in here,” Mason answered, remorse gnawing at his stomach as he realized that she didn’t know that her only son was injured while at school, courtesy of Mason.

She poked her head in, starting to say something, but her eyes widened and her mouth dropped into a silent ‘o’ when she saw Jamie, curled up in bed with a bruised face and an ice pack.

“Oh, baby,” she cried, rushing in the room to sit on the edge of his bed by his side. “What happened?”

“I am so, _so_ sorry,” Mason started apologizing right away, guilt, no doubt, obvious on his face.

“What?” She looked confused as she turned to him, still in Jamie’s desk chair.

“I didn’t mean to-” he continued, apologizing instead of telling her what happened.

“Mason, honey, I know you wouldn’t purposely hurt him,” she interrupted gently as though Jamie wasn’t right there, listening to them talk about him. “What happened?”

Too ashamed to hold her gaze, Mason looked to his lap as he bit his lip. “I, uh, I accidentally spiked the volleyball into his face during gym?” He winced as he looked up at her. “And it knocked him over. He hit his head on the concrete. The nurse said he has a concussion."

He glanced over to Jamie and saw that his eyes had slid shut while Mason was talking to his mom.

“Hey,” he said softly. “Jamie, buddy. Open your eyes- you can’t go to sleep yet.”

Jamie’s eyes fluttered open as he groaned.

“How are you feeling?” his mom asked, taking one of his hands in hers.

“Jus’ a headache ‘n my head’s fuzzy.” He flopped his hand around dismissively.

“Are you slurring because of the concussion?” Worry pinched her voice as she stroked her thumb over the back of his hand. With her other hand, she carefully brushed his hair from his forehead.

The moment felt too private and Mason wanted to leave them be without him intruding. He started to stand and both of them looked at him. “Sorry. I was, I was just,” he trailed off and pointed at the door.

“What?” came Jamie’s quiet voice. “But- you said you were going to stay.”

Dear. _Lord_. Mason’s heart fluttered at the puppy eyes Jamie was giving him. He hadn’t meant that he was going to _leave_ to go home, he only meant to excuse himself from the room to let them have their moment in private. But with Jamie looking at him with a pout, he didn’t know if he could. Still, he said, ‘bathroom’ and disappeared through the door, purposely leaving his phone behind.

On his way back, he passed the twins’ room and they shrieked when they spotted him. One of them made grabby hands at him, so he went in and sat on the floor with them.

“Jamie?” Elisabeth asked as she crawled into his lap.

“He’s not feeling well,” he told her, scooping her into his arms. “He has to stay in bed for a little while so he can get better.”

“No play?”

“That’s right. He won’t be able to play with you for a few days.”

She pouted and he thought about how that summed up how he was feeling.

“I know,” he said sympathetically, as though it wasn’t his fault that they couldn’t see their brother. “His head is hurting, so if you try to be quiet the next time you see him, I’m sure he would appreciate it.”

She put a finger to her mouth and made a loud ‘shushing’ noise. Half on his other leg, half still on the floor, Ann Marie mimicked her sister with a finger to her mouth.

“That’s right.”

Mason heard a noise of movement and looked up to see their mother standing in the doorway. She was smiling as she watched him with her daughters, but her eyes gave away her worry for her son.

“I am so sorry,” Mason apologized again before she said anything.

“It’s okay, sweetie.” She stepped into the room and placed a hand on his shoulder as she sat next to him on the floor. “We both know you didn’t mean to hurt him. It was an accident.”

Mason nodded even though he still felt like it was his fault. Which it was.

“Is he- he’s not sleeping, is he? The school nurse said to keep him awake for three to six hours to make sure it doesn’t get worse.”

She shook her head. “He was awake when I left. He’s wondering where you are. He didn’t say, but he’s worried you left.”

“Sorry. I just felt like you two needed a moment in private. I left my phone on the chair so he’d know I wasn’t going home.”

She smiled softly. “He’s a little confused about things; I don’t think he connected the dots. I appreciate the thought.”

Mason winced as he ran a hand through his hair and then everything was spilling out of him. “I don’t- I don’t know what I’m supposed to be doing. How am I supposed to know if he’s confused or slurring because of the concussion or because he’s getting tired or because his face is one big bruise?” 

He took the pamphlet from his pocket and waved it around. “The pamphlet the nurse gave me had a list of symptoms and one was lack of ability to focus and another was slow to answer questions, but again, how can I know if it’s because of the concussion or just him being tired?”

He sighed. “He’s lying down, so I can’t check if he’s dizzy or has balance problems and I don’t want to let him get up for anything other than the bathroom. I just, I feel so awful about everything. The pamphlet said that a concussion is a traumatic brain injury- I injured his _brain_. 

“I seriously hurt him,” Mason added, “and a part of me feels like I shouldn’t be here because I messed up. I hurt him and I don’t want to hurt him even more, but the other part of me doesn’t want to leave his side because I have to make sure he’s okay. But I don’t know _how_ .” Mason buried his face into his hands and mumbled, “I am _so_ , so sorry,” through his fingers. “It’s all my fault, and I just…”

“No, honey, it’s not your fault,” she assured as she pulled him into a hug, “you didn’t mess up. You care about him so much and you’re _here_ with him, which means more than what put him in bed. I trust you with him. You’re good for him and you mean so much to him, so thank you.”

He pulled back. “For what?”

“For taking care of him. For talking to the girls instead of letting them feel excluded and ignored. For being the best friend I could’ve asked for him.” She brushed his curls out of his face. The soft, motherly touch and her words warmed his heart. He bit his lip in a feeble attempt to stop the smile from tugging at his lips.

“Why don’t you go to him and make sure he’s still awake. I’ll take care of the girls.”

Saying a quick goodbye to the twins, Mason found himself back in Jamie’s room not even a minute later.

“Hey,” he said as he stepped closer to the bed. “How are you feeling?”

“‘m tired,” Jamie muttered. “I wanna go t’ sleep.”

“I know, but you can’t,” Mason said as he picked up his phone to retake his seat.

“Ugh, I know.” Jamie groaned in annoyance. “You got texts.”

Mason unlocked his phone to see multiple texts from their friends asking about Jamie. “Brodie and Kellen want to know how you’re doing.”

“Bored and tired. How much longer do I have to stay awake?”

Mason quickly texted them back then slid his phone in his pocket. “One to four more hours. Do you want me to read to you or something?”

Jamie paused for a moment to think then looked up at him. “Please?”

“Of course,” Mason said with a smile. Turning to look around Jamie’s room, he asked, “Any book in particular?”

“No. Just… whatever you want. What are you reading in class?”

“Shakespeare. I’m not reading you Shakespeare. You complain about the old English language giving you a headache on a regular day. I’m not reading you any old English while you’re concussed.”

“Oh.”

“I do have a collection of short stories that may not be as heavy on your brain. You have to promise to tell me if it’s making your head hurt more, though.”

“Oh. Yeah, sure. I promise.” Jamie smiled a little.

As he was trying to find a good place to start reading, Jamie turned onto his side, curling up with one arm sticking out from the bed. Mason’s heart skipped a beat when Jamie let it flop over Mason’s leg that was closest to him.

While reading, he occasionally looked up to see if Jamie was still awake. Seeing his eyes slip shut, he tapped twice on the back of Jamie’s wrist.

Jamie peeled his eyes open to peer up at him with hazy blue eyes. “Wha’?”

“You’re not going to sleep, are you?”

“No,” Jamie sighed unhappily, pouting again.

After that, whenever Mason noticed Jamie's eyes closed, he double-tapped his wrist and only continued when he received a double-tap back on his leg.

Around 45 minutes in, Jamie’s mom came back with some toast with peanut butter and a small bowl of grapes for Jamie and a sandwich for Mason. “You should eat before going to sleep,” she said, switching the warmed ice pack for a cold one.

Jamie needed help sitting up, then quickly admitted to being too dizzy to sit upright. He tried leaning back, but it soon became obvious that his two pillows weren’t enough to hold him up without his head pressing against the hard surface of the wall above the headboard of his bed. So Mason slid in behind him, letting Jamie lean back into his chest. Jamie was taller than him, so he didn't have to worry too much about bumping the back of his head with his shoulder.

Mason ate quickly as Jamie got situated.

Propping his knees up on either side of Jamie’s hips, his arm fell around Jamie's waist and he continued to read out loud as Jamie nibbled on his food. When he was done eating, Jamie shuffled down on the bed and tucked his forehead into Mason’s neck, cuddling into his chest and causing his heart to skip a beat.

When his breathing evened out a few minutes later, Mason grew worried that Jamie was falling asleep, so he took a hand from his book and reached up to tap Jamie on the chest, just over his heart. There was a short pause and then Jamie reached up to tap in reply on Mason’s arm. Taking that as confirmation that he was awake and paying attention, Mason began reading again.

The more time that passed, the more often Mason found himself having to tap for Jamie's attention and the slower he was replying. Eventually, he checked the time and saw that they were almost five and a half hours into the six hour window the nurse recommended.

Putting down the book, Mason rested his hand on Jamie’s arm and gave it a gentle, minute shake.

“Jamie, buddy. I need you to wake yourself up.”

Jamie groaned and pushed his face into Mason’s neck before whimpering and pulling back.

“I have to check your symptoms and if you’re okay then you can go to sleep. How does that sound?”

Jamie was silent for a second before breathing in deeply which, after many years of hearing it, Mason knew was a sign of Jamie waking himself up. He then slowly sat himself up and folded his arms on one of Mason’s bent knees and lay his head on the top, turning his face to look at Mason. His hooded blue eyes were hazy and mellow, hair ruffled and messy. He was so adorable that Mason felt himself melt a little inside.

Mason’s chest was cold from the lack of body heat.

Jamie blinked slowly at him and Mason remembered that he was supposed to be checking if Jamie would be okay to sleep. So he asked the questions the school nurse suggested- what he remembered, how was his vision, and how he was feeling, etc- paying attention to the way he was speaking. He listened to how delayed the response was, how slurred his speech was, and how well he seemed to be focusing.

Not wanting to be the sole decision-maker on Jamie’s incipient bedtime, Mason shot a quick text to Jamie’s mom- the last thing he wanted was to wrongly assume that Jamie was okay, only to find out he wasn’t later. She poked her head in a few minutes later.

“Hey, sweetie,” she said. “How are you feeling?”

Still draped over Mason’s knee, Jamie moved only his head to face his mother.

“Headache’s not as bad. My face still hurts though. I’m tired, mostly. I just wanna go to sleep.”

“Well, you’re speaking more clearly than before and don’t seem as confused, so I think you’re probably okay.” She said the last part to Mason. She asked a few more questions of her own as Mason sunk into Jamie’s pillows.

He felt drained, the emotional rollercoaster of the day catching up to him. Everything was fine earlier that day, but since the volleyball game, Mason was strung tight with guilt and concern. His own eyes dipped shut and his limbs grew heavy.

Satisfied, Jamie’s mom left with a text saying that she also thought that Jamie was okay for the night.

When he told him he could go to sleep, Jamie beamed softly at him and curled into Mason, immediately cuddling into his chest again.

Mason felt a smile tug at his lips as he pulled the blankets up and over them both. He wrapped his arms around Jamie and held him close as he drifted off and Mason joined him in sleep only a few minutes later.

**Author's Note:**

> IMPORTANT NOTE: I am most definitely not a doctor, nor am I anywhere near the medical field, so please do not take what was included in the fic as fact for what you should or should not do. I only tried to be as accurate as I could with the few days of research that I did (on the internet), but that doesn't mean that it is 100% correct.
> 
> If you liked it, I would be honoured if you would leave comments and/or kudos!  
> If you have any requests or prompts, you can let me know any time, day or night, I take them all! They can be left here in the comments or on Tumblr (larrylashton98 or fanartsarahtregay)


End file.
